Car coupler



Patented May 13, 1,941

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CAR COUPLER William J. Metzger, Cleveland,Ohio, assignor to National Malleable and Steel Castings Company,Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application April 1, 1939, SerialNo. 265,499

10 Claims.

This invention relates to car couplers and more particularly to thecoupler lock operating mechanism.

A feature of the invention is in the mounting of the rotor lever foractuating the lock, wherein the rotor lever is pivotally mounted on theoutside of a pair of spaced lugs depending from the bottom of thecoupler and the lever is joined with the look by members positioned inthe space between the lugs. A further feature resides in the connectionsbetween the rotor lever and the members joining the lever and lockwhereby rotary movement of the lever is translated into verticalmovement for raising the lock. Other objects and advantages of myinvention will become apparent from the following description taken inconnection with the following drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a partial vertical sectional view of a coupler embodying myinvention in locked position, the lock and lock operating mechanismbeing shown in full.

Figure 2 is a side elevational view partly in section of the couplershowing the mechanism in knuckle thrown position, with the rotor levershown in full.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary view of the coupler showing the front of thelock operating mechanism, taken generally along line 33 of Fig. 1.

Figure 4 is an elevational view of the lock operating mechanism, showingthe uncoupling rod side; and

Figure 5 is a sectional plan view taken along line 55 of Fig. 3.

Referring to the drawings, there is shown a coupler head I!) having aknuckle pivotally attached thereto and a shank 3. Depending from thebottom of the coupler are transversely spaced elements |4 each having adownwardly extending lug I5. Projecting outwardly from each lug I5 is ahorizontal'trunnion l6. Pivotally mounted on trunnions I6 is a rotorlever member designated generally by numeral H. The rotor lever isprovided with hook portions H; which engage the trunnions l6 and areprecluded from disengagement therefrom in all operative positions ofsaid member by overlapping curved portions IQ of side walls 20 ofelements l4. Positioned between elements I4 and extending verticallyupward through an opening 2| in the floor of the coupler is the locklift member 22 which has an arm 23 at its upper end adapted to bereceived by the eye 24 of lock 25. Member 22 is formed with a verticalslot 26 and pivotally mounted therein by means of pin 31] is theL-shaped link 3| which is adapted to cooperate with the rotor lever totransmit lifting movement therefrom to member 22. The central portion ofrotor lever 1 is bifurcated, as at 32, forming ears 33. Arm 34 of link3| extends into bifurcation 32 and by means of a pin 36 passing throughslot 35 of arm 34 and ears 33, the link is both pivotally and slidablyconnected to the rotor lever. Pin 36 may be held in place by a cotter31.

In locked postion of the coupler, as shown in Figs. 1 and 4, link 3|,due to the weight of'arm 34 and to the rotor lever acting thereon,,assumes a position in which the upper end of vertical portion 38underlies bottom wall 39 of the coupler to elfectively precludeaccidental upward creeping or jumping of the lock. The forward movementof portion 38 is limited by the engagement of the underside of arm 34with the stop or end piece 40 of member 22. At one end of the rotorlever there is provided an eye 4|, integral with one of hook portions 8and extending laterally therefrom, adapted to receive the hook portion42 of uncoupling rod 43. Depending from eye 4| is lug 44 whichcooperates with portion 45 of hook 42 to impart rotational movement fromthe uncoupling rod to the rotor lever. The other end of the rod ispivotally connected to the car by a suitable bracket 46 and terminatesin a handle 41. Although the rotor lever is shown with only one eye 4|it is to be understood that a similar eye maybe provided at the otherend so as to permit operation of the mechanism from either side of thecar.

In the uncoupling operation, upon the actuation of the rotor lever bythe uncoupling rod the first action is to tilt link 3| rearwardly to aposition in which the upper end of vertical portion 38 clears wall 39and is in engagement with a stop 48 in member 22. This movementis'eifected by the cooperation of pin 36 with the upper surface 49 ofslot 35. Link 3| and member 22 may now be raised as a unit into eitherlockset position or knuckle thrown position, as may be desired. As themembers and the lock are raised, pin 36 travels along its path ofrevolution and moves forwardly in slot 35 until it has reached theoutermost point along its arc of travel, whence it moves in the oppositedirection toward the other end of the slot until it has reached theposition shown in Fig. 2 with the knuckle thrown. It will be observedthat slot 35 is so positioned in link 3| that during the entire lockingoperation the upper surface 49 thereof slopes downwardly so that whenpin 36 is moving forwardly in the slot, it is moving uphill with respectto said surface, while when it is moving rearwardly in the slot, itmoves downhill with respect to said surface. As greater eifort isrequired to operate the mechanism when the knuckle is being thrown thanat the start of unlocking, this downhill action occurring during thelatter period of the operation increases the mechanical advantage of themechanism so that easier and smoother operation is obtained duringopening of the knuckle. Member 22 is prevented from moving rearwardlyduring operation of the mechanism by the stops 5!) which join elements Mat the lower ends thereof.

To disassemble the mechanism the uncoupling rod is first disengaged fromthe eye ii. Pin is next removed after which the rotor lever is free tobe swung in a counterclockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 1 until thehook portions iii have been released from the trunnions.

The terms and expressions which I have employed are used as terms ofdescription and not of limitation, and I have no intention, in the useof such terms and expressions, of excluding any equivalents of thefeatures shown and described. or portions thereof, but recognize thatvarious modifications are possible within the scope of the inventionclaimed.

What I claim is:

1. In a car coupler comprising a head and a pivotally mounted knuckle, alock for said knuckle, support means comprising a pair of elementsdepending from said coupler, each of said elements having a laterallyoutwardly extending bearing portion, a lift lever for operating saidlock positioned between said elements and extending through an openingin the bottom or" said coupler, said lever being formed with a verticalslot, a link pivotally connected to said lever within said slot and arotor lever pivotally mounted on said bearing portions and connected tosaid link, said link being adapted to cooperate with said rotor leverand lift lever to transmit lifting movement from said rotor lever tosaid lift a lever upon actuation of said rotor lever.

2. In a car coupler comprising a head and a pivotally mounted knuckle, alock for said knuckle, support means comprising a pair of elementsdepending from said coupler, each of said elements having a laterallyoutwardly extending bearing portion, a lift lever for operating saidlock positioned between said elements and extending through an openingin the bottom of said coupler, said lever being formed with a verticalslot, a link pivotally connected to said lever within said slot, saidlink comprising an arm having a slot therein, a rotor lever pivotallymounted on said bearing portions, and means extending through said lastnamed slot for pivotally and slidably connecting said link to said rotorlever, said link being adapted to cooperate with said rotor lever andlift lever to transmit lifting movement from said rotor lever to saidlift lever upon actuation of said rotor lever.

3. In a car coupler comprising a head and a pivotally mounted knuckle, alock for said knuckle, support means comprising a pair of elementsdepending from said coupler, each of said elements having a laterallyoutwardly extending bearing portion, a lift lever for operating saidlock positioned between said elements and extending through an openingin the bottom of said coupler, said lever being formed with a verticalslot, a link pivotally connected to said lever withace-arse in saidslot, said link comprising an arm having a slot therein, a rotor leverpivotally mounted on said bearing portions, said rotor lever having apair of spaced ears, said arm extending between said ears, and meansextending through said last named slot and ears pivotally and slidablyconnecting said link to said rotor lever, said link upon actuation ofsaid rotor lever being adapted to transmit lifting movement therefrom tosaid lift lever.

l. In a car coupler comprising a head and a pivotally mounted knuckle, alock for said knuckle, support meanscomprising a pair of elementsdepending from said coupler, each of said elements having a laterallyoutwardly extending bearing portion, a lift lever for operating saidlock positioned between said elements and extending through an openingin the bottom of said coupler, said lever being formed with a verticalslot, a link pivotally connected to said lever within said slot, saidlink comprising an arm having a slot therein, a rotor lever pivotallymounted on said bearing portions, and pivot means extending through saidlink slot and rotor lever, said last named means upon actuation of saidrotor lever bein adapted to cooperate with the top wall of said slot totransmit lifting movement from said rotor lever to said link and liftlever.

5. In a car coupler comprising a head and a pivotally mounted knuckle, alock for said knuckle, support means comprising a pair of elementsdepending from said coupler, each of said elements having a laterallyoutwardly extending bearing portion, a lift lever for operating saidlock positioned between said elements and extending through an openingin the bottom of said coupler, said lever being formed with a verticalslot, link pivotally connected to said lever within said slot, said linkcomprising an upwardly extending portion adapted to underlie a portionof said coupler when said coupler is in locked position to limitcreeping of said lock, and a rotor lever pivotally mounted on saidbearing portions and being pivotally connected to said link, said rotorlever being adapted to rotate said link to withdraw said upwardlyextending portion from beneath said portion of the coupler andthereafter to impart a lifting movement to said link to raise said lockto unlocked position.

6. In a car coupler comprising a head, a knuckle pivotally attachedthereto, a lock for said knuckle, support means comprising a pair ofelements depending from said coupler, each of said elements having alaterally outwardly extending bearing portion, a rotor lever pivotallymounted on said portions, a lift lever for operatin said lock positionedbetween said elements and extending through an opening in the bottom ofsaid coupler, said lever being formed with a vertical slot, link meanspivotally connected to said lever within said slot adapted to transmitlifting movement from said rotor lever to said lift lever, said linkcomprising an arm having a downwardly extending slot therein, and pivotmeans extending through said link slot and rotor lever connecting saidlink thereto, said last named means upon actuation of said rotor leverbeing constructed and arranged to slidably engage the top wall of saidlink slot so as to move uphill with respect thereto during the beginningof the unlocking operation and downhill with respect thereto during thecompletion of the operation.

'7. In a car coupler comprising a head and a pivotaily mounted knuckle,a lock for said knuckle, support means comprising a pair of elementsdepending from said coupler, each of said elements having a laterallyoutwardly extending bearing portion, a lift lever for operating saidlock positioned between said elements and extendings through an openingin the bottom of said coupler, said lever being formed with a verticalslot, a link pivotally connected to said lever within said slot, saidlink comprising an upwardly extending portion adapted to underlie aledge on said coupler when said coupler is in locked position to limitcreeping of said lock, and a rotor lever pivotally mounted on saidhearing portions and being connected to said link, said link and rotorlever being constructed and arranged so that upon initial actuation ofsaid rotor lever said link is withdrawn from underneath said ledge andupon further actuation said link is adapted to transmit lifting movementfrom said rotor lever to said lift lever.

8. A car coupler havingan opening in the bottom thereof, a pivotallymounted knuckle, a vertically movable lock for said knuckle having a legextending downwardly through said opening, means comprising a bell cranklever pivotally joined to said leg having an upwardly extending portionnormally underlying a portion of said coupler for limiting upwardmovement of said lock, support means comprising two elements dependingfrom said coupler directlyopposite each side of said leg, a lugextending laterally outwardly from each of said elements, and meanspivotally mounted on said lugs adjacent the leg of said lock andpivotally connected to said first named means for withdrawing saidportion from beneath the coupler and for raising said lock to unlockedposition.

9. A car coupler having an opening in the bottom thereof, a pivotallymounted knuckle, a vertically movable lock for said knuckle having a legextending downwardly through said opening, means pivotally joined tosaid leg having an upwardly extending portion normally underlying aportion of said coupler for limiting upward movement of said lock,support means comprising two elements depending from said couplerdirectly opposite each side of said leg, a lug extending laterallyoutwardly from each of said elements, means pivotally mounted on saidlugs adjacent the leg of said lock having a projection extendingforwardly from the pivotal mounting thereof, said first named meanshaving a forwardly extending slotted arm adjacent said projection, andmeans passing through said projection and slot for pivotally joiningsaid projection and arm.

10. A car coupler having an opening in the bottom thereof, a pivotallymounted knuckle, a vertically movable lock for said knuckle having a legextending downwardly into said opening, means pivotally joined to saidleg having an upwardly extending portion normally underlying a'portionof said coupler for limiting upward movement of said lock, support meanscomprising two elements depending from said coupler directly oppositeeach side of said leg, a lug extending laterally outwardly from each ofsaid elements, means pivotally mounted on said lugs adjacent the leg ofsaid lock having a projection extending forwardly from the pivotalmounting thereof, said first named means having a slotted arm'adjacentsaid projection, and means passing through said projection and slot forpivotally joining said projection and arm, said slot being so positionedin said arm that the upper Wall thereof slopes downwardly and forwardlyduring movement of said look from locked to unlocked position.

WILLIAM J. METZGER.

